The present invention relates to an improvement in the methods used to provide storage in the interior of pickup trucks. More specifically, to a method of providing a secure and separate storage compartment underneath the rear folding seats that are in common use with the extended cab pickup trucks that are in the marketplace today.
The sale of pickup trucks represents a large percentage of the total number of vehicles sold today. Of this percentage, an increasing number of extended cab pickup trucks are being sold. An extended cab pickup truck is one that has an additional amount of interior cab space located directly behind the driver""s seat and in front of the rear wall of the vehicle""s cab. This space is generally used for storage and often contains a relatively small folding seat used to seat children or when the need arises, smaller adults.
Pickup trucks have always presented problems to their owners in the storage of valuables within the vehicle as they contain no large areas within which items can be stored in a manner that conceals their presence from view such as the trunks of passenger cars. The use of extended cab pickup trucks does help to alleviate this problem as they provide an area to store personal property within the locked interior of the vehicle. However, the items stored in this manner are still highly visible through its windows to persons standing outside the vehicle. This situation can actually promote break-ins (either by picking the door locks or simply breaking one of the vehicle""s windows) as the relatively easy access to valuable items within the pickup can be difficult for persons inclined to such activity to pass up. Therefore, the use of the extended area of the pickup""s cab as a storage space can actually lead to unnecessary damage to the vehicle and costly repair bills to its owner.
Additionally, the use of the extended cab area of such pickup trucks often results in the items being stored in a chaotic and cluttered manner. Outside of the visibility issues this creates as described above, this manner of storage can also create two other problems for the vehicle""s owner. The first of these is that the chaotic manner of storage can result in damage to the items being stored. A couple of examples of the types of problems encountered as a result of this are the stock of a shotgun can be gouged or scratched to a degree that it devalues it or electronic gear becoming damaged due to their constant contact with other items as the vehicle shifts in the vertical and horizontal axises as it travels over streets and highways. The second problem associated with the storage of personal items in the extended portion of the pickup cab is it tends to make items hard to locate in a timely manner making it difficult for the vehicle owner retrieve things from the storage place when needed.
Therefore, it can be seen that it would be desirable to provide an apparatus which would allow the owner to store valuable items in the extended portion of an extended cab pickup in a manner so that they are not visible from the exterior of the vehicle, thereby lessening the chance loss of property and damage to the vehicle as a result of criminal break-ins. Additionally, that it would be desirable to provide such a storage mechanism that will protect the property from damage due to the constant motion of the vehicle. Finally, that it would also be desirable to provide such a storage mechanism that would allow the user to store valuables in a neat and organized manner allowing for their easy retrieval when needed.
It is the primary objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus which would allow the owner to store valuable items in the extended portion of an extended cab pickup in a manner so that they are not visible from the exterior of the vehicle, thereby lessening the chance loss of property and damage to the vehicle as a result of break-ins.
It is an additional objective of the present invention to provide such an apparatus which will provide such a storage mechanism that protects the personal property stored within it from damage due to the constant motion of the vehicle as it travels over streets and highways.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide such an apparatus providing a storage mechanism that would allow the user to store valuables in a neat and organized manner allowing for their easy retrieval when needed.
These objectives are accomplished by the use of a storage bin that is an opened topped rectangular box that is specifically designed to fit in the space of the rear portion of an extended cab pickup truck that is formed by the folding down of the rear folding seat. The use of the storage bin allows the owner of the extended cab pickup truck to store valuable items, such as electronics gear or hunting rifles and shotguns, in a secure manner that is out of sight from individuals on the outside of the vehicle. Additionally, the present invention is large enough to store multiple rifles or shotguns and their associated cases in a secure manner.
The present invention is most commonly formed of a single piece of molded high impact plastic but can also be constructed from any other material that is suitable for the construction of these types of apparatuses. The use of the high impact plastic is very suitable for this application as it is easily shaped into the desired shape, it is strong and light weight providing a secure manner of containment for the stored items of personal property, and the color of the raw material used for its construction can be manipulated to match the interior color of the specific vehicle that it is used with. This color matching ability not only creates a more pleasing aesthetic, but also helps to conceal the presence of the storage bin thereby further lessening the chances of property loss or damage as a result of break ins.
Additionally, it is important to note that the present invention as illustrated is designed and constructed for use with late model full sized GENERAL MOTORS extended cab pickup trucks with an alternative embodiment shown for late model FORD extended cab pickup trucks. This illustration is employed for simplicity purposes and is not meant to imply that its use is limited to these specific vehicles. In fact, while the design of the rear seating area of the extended cab pickup trucks do vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, it has been contemplated to provide a similar storage bin for use in other brands of full sized extended cab pickup trucks and also for use in mid-sized and small extended cab pickup trucks.
The present invention is an opened topped rectangular box made up of a bin floor forming the bottom of the storage space and is the surface upon which the personal property to be stored is most commonly placed. The most forward long side of the rectangle defined by the bin floor forms the point of attachment for the front wall of the invention and which extends upward at a ninety degree angle. Additionally, the rearward long side of the rectangle also forms the point of attachment for the rear wall which mirrors the form of the front wall and further acts to confine the interior space of the present invention. Finally, the short sides of the bin floor are similarly equipped with the side walls which extend upwards in the same manner as described above for the front and rear walls and serve to horizontally enclose the space inside of the invention. This manner of construction forms the opened topped form of the storage bin and, as previously stated, is most often formed from a single piece of high impact plastic resulting in a very strong and durable apparatus that is perfectly suited to the purposes for which it was designed.
The bin floor is also specially designed to accommodate the drive train tunnel that is an integral part of the cab floor of all rear wheel drive vehicles which is in turn the most common means of power delivery in pickup trucks. The drive train tunnel is an upwardly oriented extension of the cab floor providing space for the vehicle""s drive train, such as the transmission and drive shaft, to pass the rear end and deliver the necessary power. To compensate for the drive train tunnel, the present invention is built with a tunnel channel which effectively mirrors the shape of the drive train tunnel and allows it to fit perfectly over the drive train tunnel and also to make the most efficient use of the available space.
The tunnel channel of the present invention is constructed by raising the bin floor at its center portion to a height that corresponds to the level of the upper portion of the vehicle""s drive train tunnel. This is accomplished by the installation of two tunnel walls on the bin floor in positions so that they each enclose the sides of the drive train tunnel. The tunnel walls extend from their point of attachment to the bin floor in a diagonal manner towards the center line of the body of the present invention. The upper portion of the tunnel walls terminate at approximately the halfway point of the depth of the interior of the storage bin. The space remaining between the tunnel walls is then covered by the tunnel cover which seals off the lower portion of the interior of the invention through its, and the tunnel wall""s, connection to the front and rear walls. An additional advantage provided to the present invention by the use of the tunnel channel is that it fits precisely over the vehicle""s drive train tunnel which has the affect of locking it into the desired position and ensuring that the valuables contained therein are provided with a stable storage environment within the extended cab pickup truck.
The operation of the flip-up rear seat and the open top of the present invention function together to both seal off the storage bin when necessary and to provide easy access to its interior when desired. The present invention is designed to be positioned so that when the rear flip-up seat is placed in the down or horizontal orientation for seating purposes, the flip-up seat serves as a cover to the invention concealing its contents. Conversely, when the operator wishes to gain access to the interior of the invention, he simply raises the folding seat to its vertical orientation which exposes its interior.
Additionally, the mechanism employed to facilitate the raising and lowering of the flip-up seat is a pair of release latches located on the bottom surface of the outer and forward corners of the flip-up seat which lock the flip-up seat in the horizontal position. To raise the flip-up seat, these latches are released and the flip-up seat is then pivoted upwards to expose the present invention. To allow access to the seat the release latches the forward corners of the present invention which are equipped with release latch notches which allow the user to reach in and activate the seat release latches to raise the flip-up seat.
The interior of the present invention is also designed with a plurality of features that allow its space to be further divided to customize it for storage purposes. The features described here are for illustrative purposes and it should be noted that the present invention is capable of being internally configured in a wide variety of configurations that have not been discussed. The division of the internal space of the present invention is accomplished by the use of a space divider which is a wall-like feature that is positioned in the center of the invention in a manner so that it divides the space in a longitudinal fashion. The space divider is so positioned by the use of the center space bracket located at the central point of the tunnel cover and by the use of the two side spacer brackets located on the inside lower center portion of the side walls. These brackets contain notches that correspond in size to the width of the space divider. The installation of the space divider is then accomplished simply by fitting the appropriate portions of the space divider into the brackets. The use of the space divider (as illustrated or in any other configuration) allows the operator to customize the interior space of the invention to fit their needs.
An alternative embodiment of the present invention has also been contemplated in which the configuration of the storage bin is altered to function in a pickup truck that employs the use of a split seat design in the rearward portion of the cab. In this design, the rearward portion of the storage bin is lowered, in relation to its upper lip, to accommodate the manner in which the split rear seats in these vehicles fold up to expose the storage bin. That is to say, the rearward portion of the folding split seat lowers towards the floor of the cab during the folding process and the body of the invention is designed so that it does not interfere with this process. With the exception of this design change, this embodiment of the present invention functions in the exact same manner as that previously described and therefore provides the secure place for storage in the same convenient fashion.
For a better understanding of the present invention reference should be made to the drawings and the description in which there are illustrated and described preferred embodiments of the present invention.